Expect snow, tricky commute Friday morning in the Seattle area

Updated 8:16 am, Thursday, December 19, 2013

Two inches or more of snow could fall in the Seattle area early Friday morning.

The snow will make for a challenging commute.

But rain, warmer temperatures and winds from the south will be pushing into the area. By early afternoon, the snow should be a memory in the lowlands.

The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm watch, saying there could be 1 to 5 inches of snow from Tacoma to the north. The best chance of snow accumulation is early Friday morning starting before sunrise.

University of Washington meteorologist Cliff Mass writes in his blog: " ... the bottom line is clear: The commute time on Friday morning will be a white one, so be prepared."

He suggests it would be a good idea to make such preparations as driving your car down that hill and parking it before you go to bed Thursday night.

He predicts that the Seattle area will get 2 to 4 inches of snow. More will likely fall in north King County and in Snohomish County, Mass says. The mountains could get a foot of snow.

Less snow is expected south of Tacoma and around Port Angeles.

The Seattle area is now in the grips of a dry cold front. But warmer moist air will come in, giving us a good chance for snow.

Temperatures are expected to drop to around freezing in Seattle on Thursday night.

Still, these are predictions. The National Weather Service's forecasters say there are factors both for and against snow accumulation. And Mass says that snow accumulations in the lowlands could differ from what's predicted by as much as 50 percent.

What does seem certain is that the snow will turn to rain, at least by Friday morning.

"... this is as close as we will come to having a white Christmas this year," Mass writes.